1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an amusement device. More specifically, this invention relates to a puzzle or toy consisting of a tubular multi-chambered capsule and two rolling members requiring separate positioning into the outer chambers.
2. Background Art
Puzzles and toys are created to challenge and test mankind's dexterity and/or intellect. The articles found in the market place attest to the diversity and ingenuity displayed. Products reflecting those ideas are at times cumbersome and often laborious. Simplicity is overlooked both in design and fabrication resulting in additional external parts being subject to misplacement and additional assembly pieces. Although some puzzles and toys provide a manipulation problem, the manipulation primarily consists of simply manipulating ball(s) through a maze by manual dexterity. Only one prior invention employed the use of momentum in the form of centrifugal force as a solution; however, the design is complex requiring construction of sides, cover, and curved base with depressions and recesses. Simplification of design and fabrication for entirely self-contained amusement devices which enhances or will not jeopardize the challenge of the devices' solution or manipulation are valued improvements in the art.
None of the prior inventions are adapted for the manipulation of balls whereby features added to create a challenging feat of manipulation form an integral part of and are incorporated as the enclosure or capsule itself in which the balls are encased. This is due to the fact that prior inventions append features to an enclosure resulting in the production of troughs, grooves, crevices, holes, depressions, recesses, projecting barriers and barricades, and separate covers and sides for encasement and these inventions are the enclosure being the feature or extraneous feature. These prior inventions are incapable of claiming and are not conducive to easy fabrication and to reducing manufacturing and production costs while still providing an extremely challenging amusement device.
Also, prior puzzle/toys require movement of balls induced by specific motion, they do not address a broad spectrum of skill in the art utilizing the combined manipulation of the device via vertical and horizontal rotation or a combination thereof, balancing, tapping and uni or bi directional spinning as a solution to the placement of rolling members or balls contained within a consecutively linked multi-chambered fully symmetrical capsule and still maintain itself as a simply designed unit. Unfortunately, there is a tradeoff between fabrication complexity and manipulation requirements for a puzzle/toy device; both aspects are contradictory characteristics. Although, manipulation requirements could be increased for this invention which would accommodate all above-noted manipulation with the insertion of two simple internal partitions, these partitions would not aid in augmenting the simplicity of design and fabrication sought for a puzzle/toy device.
The following patents are listed as pertinent art found:
______________________________________ PATENT NO INVENTOR TITLE ______________________________________ 4,909,512 Davis "Game Apparatus Utilizing Rolling Members" 3,738,658 Smith "Disk Rotating Game" 2,553,913 Gleasman "Puzzle" 1,765,019 Maxwell "Ball Puzzle Device" 601,924 Wilson "Toy or Puzzle" 598,879 Sutherland "Game Apparatus" 589,825 Gephart "Game Board" ______________________________________